Abstract:
Paved roads are designed for 10-15 years of life. However, many paved roads suffer degradation
before reaching their life span due to the degradation of the asphalt pavement that occurs by the
aging of the asphalt by load conditions and climatic factors giving rise to cracks and permanent
deformation. As a way of improving the performance of the asphalt pavement and prolonging its
life, polymers, oils and other additives have been chosen to modify the asphalt. The present work
aims to evaluate the influence of the addition of engine oil on the consistency and thermal
properties of asphalt modified by high density polyethylene (HDPE). In this study, compositions
were prepared containing asphalt, engine oil and HDPE, varying the concentration of engine oil
in 2.5%, 5%, 7.5% and 10% and keeping the HDPE concentration at 5%. The samples were
characterized by conventional tests: penetration and softening point viscosity, ductility, aging in
a Rotational Thin Film Oven (RTFO) and Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA). According to the
results, the addition of HDPE to virgin asphalt causes an increase in the consistency of virgin
asphalt, which then linearly reduces as engine oil is added in an increasing manner. Conventional
tests showed improvements in asphalt applicability in terms of crack resistance and permanent
deformation; TGA showed a slight increase in stability for the modified asphalt samples at
elevated temperatures; the RTFO showed improvement in thermal stability for virgin asphalt
after addition of HDPE which then reduced slightly after addition of motor oil without exceeding
the acceptable limit
